VERNAL, Utah (KUTV) — Documents reveal how authorities finally identified a second suspect in the 50-year-old slaying of a Vietnam veteran.

Darrel Eugene Choate has an arrest warrant for the 1972 killing of 21-year-old Gregory Nickell.

“It was a terrible loss for us,” said Lynnette Ray, Nickell’s sister.

PREVIOUS:Suspect identified in Uintah County cold case nearly 50 years later

KUTV spoke with Ray in 2022.

Nickell was shot dead in 1972 while on a date with an 18-year-old girl.

According to court documents, the woman told police she and Nickell were parked at a rest area on Hwy 40 west of Vernal.

The woman told police a man approached them and said there had been an accident on Hwy 40, asking Nickell to drive into town and contact the sheriff.

The man then allegedly pulled out a gun and shot Nickell. The victim told police that Nickell was trying to shield her from the bullets because she believed some of the shots were aimed at her.

His car and body were later burned after the suspect was joined by another man and stole Nickell’s car. The woman was allegedly kidnapped and raped by the two men.

DNA was taken from the woman and stored for observation when the right technology was available.

In 2015, Uintah County investigators reevaluated the evidence.

DNA samples were tested and a suspect was identified as Daniel Bell. Police discovered he died in 2019 in Washington before investigators got back DNA results.

The second suspect, Choate, remained unidentified until recently.

“I just want to look him in the face and ask him why,” Ray said.

According to the documents, the Utah State Lab compared Choate’s DNA to DNA collected in 1972.

Choate is a direct match for one of the suspects who killed Nickell and raped the 18-year-old.

Ray doesn’t understand why these two men would do such a thing.

“(Nickell) was nothing but a contributor to this society. Just a good person. Why would you? I don’t think they’re going to have an answer,” Ray said.

The warrant application for Choate’s arrest was signed on October 30.

___